FabOS: Hooking up Container Platforms with Time-Sensitive Networks
Manuel Eppler, Jochen Schenk, Tobias Gruner, Andreas Zirkler, Harald S. MUELLER, Andreas Blenk · 2023
There is no holistic approach that provides a full implementation and integration of flexible container platforms with time-sensitive networks in industrial factories yet. This hinders innovation and also withhelds the advantages of flexible infrastructure from industrial network operators --- a clear miss of optimization opportunities. To fill this gap, this paper proposes the FabOS architecture: a Kubernetes and Time-Sensitive-Networking-based architecture. Hence, FabOS provides flexible processing and deterministic networking for future industrial factories. With FabOS, use case developers can for the first time specify and implement applications that are deployed on Kubernetes connected via a time-sensitive network. Measurements taken from a proof-of-concept implementation demonstrate that future factories can benefit from bringing together container platforms and real-time networking.